Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Example Data Sheets
On Wednesday, October 26 you will workshop the forms that you will use to collect the data for your behavior modification experiment. In order to help generate ideas for how to format your sheet, here are a few examples from previous classes:
Draft Workshop Feeder 2.1
1. The assignment asks you to take a piece of scientific research and make it meaningful to your audience. This involves a unique answer to the "so what?" question. How does the original article answer the "so what?" question? In other words, why does this research matter to psychologists? (note: you might have to ask the author or look up the original article to find out.) Now, explain why this research matters to your blog's audience… has the author explained and supported this answer adequately? Do you think your readers will really value this research in the way the author has proposed?
2. Many of your summaries for Feeder 1.2 were too long, too detailed, and too closely mimicked the structure of the original article. Does it feel like the author has fully digested the research he or she is presenting? Are the key terms explained vividly, simply, and in ways that your audience can understand clearly? Go through the draft and strike out any information that you think is too detailed for the needs of your audience.
3. Is the essay organized? Evaluate the author's paragraphing skills; does each paragraph have a clear topic sentence and stick to only one topic without wavering? Is each paragraph's idea fully developed? Identify any potential problem paragraphs and note how the author might revise them.
4. Evaluate the writer's introduction. Does s/he grab the reader's attention quickly? Does s/he transition quickly and effectively to the thesis statement? Does the author follow the pattern of one of the more or less effective introductions we talked about in class? Note any ways in which you think the introduction might be improved.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
RadioLab Podcast Assignment (Homework over Fall Break)
We'll be working with the RadioLab podcast titled “Lucy.” You can hear it here:
or you can download the mp3 directly here:
Read through these questions before you listen to the podcast, but answer them after you listen. As you are listening, compose a retrospective outline of the podcast. Post this outline along with your answers to the following questions in a new Google Doc titled "[your name]'s RadioLab assignment." Share this Google Doc with me.
1. What kind of “hook” do they use to draw in the listener? (Note: ignore the plea for money that precedes the podcast.)
2. Estimate what proportion of the program is based on extempore speech and what seems to be read from a script. How can you tell?
3. Note any background music or sound effects that seem to have been added in post-production. Why were these things added? How do they make the podcast clearer or more interesting?
4. Note any terms or concepts that you learned about from listening to the podcast. How were these explained? How did the authors make these complex ideas and terms easy to understand?
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